Coleen Rooney has spoken for the first time since winning the Wagatha Christie trial against Rebekah Vardy.
Coleen, 36, broke her silence after the verdict was handed down by Mrs Justice Steyn at 12pm today (Friday).
It came after almost three years of friction between the pair, which started after Coleen took to her Instagram page to accuse Rebekah of leaking stories about her to the press.
The hand down took place remotely, meaning nothing happened in court. In a much-anticipated ruling on Friday, Mrs Justice Steyn found in Mrs Rooney's favour and dismissed the claim against her.
In her decision, Mrs Justice Steyn wrote: "The Court found that the Claimant, together with Ms Watt, was party to the disclosure to The Sun of the Marriage, Birthday, Halloween, Pyjamas, Car Crash, Gender Selection, Babysitting and Flooded Basement Posts.
"The Court considered it likely that Ms Watt undertook the direct act, in relation to each post, of passing the information to a journalist at The Sun, but found that the Claimant knew of, condoned and was actively engaged in this process."
Coleen shared her reaction shortly after the long-awaited decision was made public.
Her statement read: "Naturally, I am pleased the judge has found in my favour in her judgement today.
"It was not a case I ever sought or wanted.
"Both before and after my social media posts in October 2019, I made constant efforts to avoid the need for such a public and drawn out court case.
"But all my efforts to do so were knocked back by Mrs Vardy and her lawyers.
"This left me with no alternative but to go through with the case to defend myself and to end the repeated leaking of my private information to The Sun."
The statement added: "The leaks from my private Instagram account began in 2017. They continued for almost two years, intruding on my privacy and that of my family.
"Although I bear Mrs Vardy no ill will, today’s judgement makes clear that I was right in what I said in my Instagram posts.
"Finally, I would to thank all of my legal team, my family and friends and everyone who has supported me – including the public – through this difficult and stressful time."
Rebekah has always vehemently denied Coleen's claims, which were made public while she was pregnant with her youngest daughter Olivia.
Following the claims, Rebekah decided to sue Coleen for libel in a battle which was played out in High Court in London over a week in May.
A number of explosive claims were made during the trail as the women were supported in court by their husbands, with Peter Andre even being pulled into the hearing after Rebekah compared his manhood to a 'chipolata' in a 2004 kiss and tell story.
Coleen had said she spent five months attempting to work out who was sharing information about her and her family based on posts she had made on her personal social media page.
After sharing a series of “false” stories and using a process of elimination, Mrs Rooney claims they were viewed by one Instagram account, belonging to Mrs Vardy.
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